Hands-On With the Sony Rolly

Thanks to the nice people at Dynamism, we managed to get our hands on the Sony Rolly, which, at the moment, is still unavailable in the States. This means that the instruction booklet and the included software are only available in Japanese. The first one isn’t a huge problem. We have a couple of people in the office who speak Japanese. Plus I’m not really the instruction reading type–though that picture toward the end of the Rolly emitting plumes of smoke did have me a bit worried. The second, however, is more of an issue, as my computer wouldn’t load the disc.[More text, video, and pictures, after the jump]

We spoke with the folks at Dynamism who assured us that all we needed to do was install Sony Sonicstage on our system. I downloaded the soon-to-be defunct music software on my computer. The app does indeed communicate with the unit. You can drag and drop music on the device with Sonicstage. The primary benefit of the included software, though, is the ability to program your own dance moves on the Rolly. Also, it helps you activate the device’s built-in Bluetooth compatibility.

Once the device is disconnected, you stick it on the floor (or another place where it will be safe from long falls), turn it on, and double-click the button on the top. The track at the top of the playlist will begin, and the Rolly should start dancing along, though, for the record, it sometimes takes one or two starts to get it going.

The speakers are located at either end of the device and are covered by moveable flaps, which open and close once the Rolly begins. It’s a bit of a design flaw, since the music dampens when they shut.The two long wheels spin the Rolly around in sync with the music, as the lights that surround them flash in different colors. The wheels also act as volume controls. Pick the Rolly up and twist them to adjust sound levels.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what the Rolly does, in an oblong nutshell. It’s one of those either you appreciate it or you don’t propositions. If you’re down, you can pick it up from Dynamism right now, for a cool $479.